What's Your Name?

Chapter 7: It's Only Temporary

"She's lucky you jumped in to save her. Her BAC was well over .08%. We pumped her stomach and stitched her up." The nurse looked at Dick and creased her eyebrow. "Who did you say you were again?"

"Frank. Frank Guhana." He gave the nurse a charming smile and shrugged, looking back at me. "but my friends call me Dick." He looked at me and winked.

"That makes sense why she asked Dr. Maller for 'Dick'. We thought it was just vulgarity." She flipped open the clipboard and read the paper for a silent moment, the background noise of a hospital quiet, yet so full of noise. "She may or may not have a bit of a concussion. We asked her the standard questions, and we asked her to name a few of her friends, which sounded real, so we can only hope. Keep her away from cliffs and alcohol for a while, will you?"

"Will do, ma'am. C'mon Victoria. Let's get you home to your mom."

When we got in his car, which surprised me...like this rugged guy who looks like he owns either his dad's old school or a huge pick-up truck to compensate for something owned neither, yet a little red Ford Fusion. Back to the matter at hand, I looked at the gash on my forehead and peeled the bandage back a little to reveal what was going to be the star of all my graduation pictures.

"I think it looks nice," Dick mused. "It'll heal in not time if you drink water and put pure aloe vera on it, but it's gonna leave an ugly scar. You might what to consider bangs."

"Oh ha ha, Frank."

"You can't go around telling others that. I've been friends with Richie for almost fifteen years and I'm sure he doesn't know that Frank is my real name. And I'd like to keep it that way, please."

"No problem, hotdog." I pause and smirk to myself. "Frankly, I think you shouldn't question my ability to keep a secret."

"Okay, you can stop now."

We reach the hotel in a little over forty minutes and I plop on the bed in relief, presently wondering where Aracelia, Maria, and Bernie were.

"Nice little hotel you got here. I'm surprised a bunch of high school kids could afford a place like this... and for two weeks?"

"They gave us a deal, plus were all basically sharing rooms like were at summer camp," I said through the sheets. I turned my head to the side to feel the cool sheets against my flashing skin. "I don't know what time my bunkmates will be back cause I left my phone in the truck...so..."

"Is that an invitation to stay or the nice way of you kicking me out?" His voice lowered to a dangerous whisper, and I knew what that meant. 

"An invitation to babysit me for the remaining time my friends are gone so I don't drink the bottle of Hennessy I saved in my duffle bag."

"Oh god, that's right." He walked slowly over to me as if he was silently asking for my permission, and of course, I signed the dotted line. He sat on the bed and laid his hand on my back.

"You seemed like a bad judge of character. I tried to forget, yet I've added to the list of things I wanted to forget instead of taking away from the list." I paused for a gulp of air, then pressed my face into the sheets. "Which defeated the whole goddamned point."

"Well, Victoria, you have to remember what I told you. Alcohol isn't the answer. It only makes you forget the question."

"Get out of here with your Yoda-type wisdom." 

His hand slowly stroked down to the small of my back and rested there. Nothing sexual about it, yet, once he shifted his full weight onto the bed, I closed my eyes.